29 - Autumn Leaves

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Uncover the remaining secrets of the mysterious forest.
When: Nov 29 - 30
Where: Chichibu National Park & the Central District
Summary: A heavily forested wilderness area in Chichibu National Park is attracting dangerous numbers of ayakashi, and Heaven's forces suspect that this might be the mortal forest that was connected to the Heavens in order to kidnap gods and shinki a few weeks ago.






Walk in the Woods

On the morning of the 29th, Heaven's messenger doves drop off small folded cards at the doors of every temple. The cards read,


We believe that we have identified the location on the Near Shore where the human accomplices were working. As it is a large area, we offer you this information, in case you are able to assist us in searching for clues to the identity of the culprit. Please investigate with caution: there are reports of ayakashi in the area.


Attached is a map to a large national park in the Kanto region, with a section of the park cross-hatched in red pen. Anyone who goes to investigate the marked area will discover that it is heavily forested and contains about a mountain and a half; the ground is steep, muddy with autumn rain, and slick with dead leaves, though some red and orange colors are still grimly clinging to the branches overhead. Watch your step! The supernatural menace seems to have faded, but the purely natural hazards can do almost as much damage.

Heaven's forces, wearing white short jackets with gold chrysanthemum emblems over much more sensible jeans and hiking boots, can be seen here and there throughout the forest, searching for clues themselves. If somebody gets in a real jam, they might be willing to lend a hand.

Mysterious Trees

Towards the center of the cross-hatched area, investigators may begin to see some familiar signs. Are those bits of torn-down spell papers still fluttering from nails driven into the trees? Vines and tree branches cut and broken by the hostage rescuers breaking through? Footprints, torn bits of black hooded cloaks... there are clues aplenty here.

There's something else, too: a mysterious presence still seems to haunt the forest. The trees might not move when anyone's watching, but it seems like they're in slightly different positions every time you look away and back. And what was that flicker of movement in the underbrush? Is there still someone here?!

Comment on the NPC REQUEST/CLUE SEARCH thread below to request specific details, or to go hunting for that mysterious presence.

Ayakashi Attacks

There's more than one mysterious presence in these trees... and some of them are definitely not friendly. The forest's aura is unsettling and creepy enough to partially mask their approach, but ayakashi of all types and sizes seem to have been drawn here. Some wind along tree branches or soar through the air on fleshy, wide-spread wings. Others crawl or even burrow in the ground.

And all of them are excited at the possibility of a divine meal. Look out!

Autumn Leaf Viewing

An area of the Central District planted with maple along a stone-walled canal has been decorated with hanging lanterns, comfortable spread mats and cushions, and an abundance of delicious food and drink on the afternoon of the 30th. Everyone is invited: new gods and old, those who helped investigate the Near Shore forest and those who didn't. For those who did investigate, though, one or two of the white-robed shinki who are helping with the party preparations and enjoying the food and drink themselves will take the opportunity to pull them aside and ask about their findings.

The party includes games as well as food and drink. Kites, poetry games, tag, hide-and-seek, card games and dice games are going on all over. There's even some determined board game and mahjong players who have brought their favorite game to the outdoor venue and are setting up on mats with immense care.

At one edge of the landscaped area where the party is being held, the ground slopes up, and is planted with a riot of bright gold, white and rust-red chrysanthemums. Like the ones that bloomed everywhere a few months ago, these flowers exude a sense of peace, confidence and security to anyone nearby, and especially those who pick the blooms to wear in their hair or their buttonhole.

In Summary:

• Investigate a wild forest
• Watch out for nasty trees
• Exorcise an ayakashi infestation
• Enjoy some hard-earned relaxation
• Have fun~

Comments

C

[redmare]

[ Of course Shun had nothing, which was why Chinatsu was bringing him a drink and a plate of food they could share. ]

It's like you're allergic to fun or something.

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun is...definitely not taking either of those things until he can identify what they are, because there's a lot of drinks that are common at parties that he either can't or won't drink, and the same goes for food.]

I get too alert in crowds. Being surrounded by people I don't know or barely know and only a scattered few I know well doesn't put me at ease like it seems to do for some people.

[redmare]

Uh-huh...

[ She sits next to him, placing a cup near him. ]

It's tea, not poison.

[ She'll even take a sip to show him. ]

So are you here to chew out the old gods or something?

[revolutionfalcon]

[Poison wasn't exactly what Shun was thinking, but the mention that it's tea helps a bit. After she takes a sip, he reaches out for the cup and inspects the contents for a moment before taking one himself.]

I'm here in case something goes wrong. It's why I usually come to these things. [He is, at least, also sitting in a direction where he can watch the leaves, so that's something if he's also partially come to do what the gathering is supposed to be for.] We've had enough of them go south that it pays to be sure.

[redmare]

...You make it sound like that's your only purpose. [ He wasn't wrong about how these things kept messing up somehow, but even he deserved to enjoy himself every now and then. ]

Did you try playing anything with Ren-san?

[revolutionfalcon]

I don't like being among the crowd, like I said. If someone's going to keep an eye on things, it might as well be someone who wouldn't be enjoying themselves in the middle of the party anyway. [Shun puts that fairly straightforwardly, apparently unabashed by his lack of purpose for being here besides keeping an eye on things. He's had similar conversations before now, and though he has properly participated in some gatherings before, they're usually the more nostalgic ones like Tanabata.

At the question, he gives a faint snort.] I haven't seen him yet today, but the two of us playing something here would probably ruin the party for everyone around us.

[They're both very much two things: 1. Competitive, and 2. Unashamed of how that competitiveness might come off. Which in Shun is usually decidedly unsettling, and in Ren is often extremely questionable to the point of edging lewd.]

[redmare]

...You know, you sound a lot like someone I met recently.

[ Was that a thing here? Dark, solitary types getting together with sociable redheads? ]

You feeling better now?

[revolutionfalcon]

In what way? [To Shun, there doesn't seem like much point in saying something like that unless she's going to specify, especially since he's definitely not the only person here who, for example, prefers to stick to the edges of a party.

He raises a brow at the question, though.] If you're talking about the forest thing, it's been two weeks. I was already fine a week ago.

[redmare]

You both don't really feel the need to go talk to people. You're perfectly content with the one or two close friends you have.

[ Nothing wrong with that, she figures. But even to her just one or two still seemed lonely. ]

I mean do you feel better now that you got to be more active in figuring out what happened.

[ Chinatsu knew Shun was pretty pissed about what happened to him, so hopefully this helped him get even. ]

[revolutionfalcon]

That's not that uncommon here. [Shun at least has more than one or two friends in general, which is more than he could say for how he was back home for a while. Close friends are more difficult with him, and it doesn't help that one of them betrayed his trust recently.

He gives a shrug in answer to her question.] We're hardly any closer to who did it at this point. Taking it out on some ayakashi isn't the same as taking it out on the culprit.

[He's less annoyed that it happened to him and more that it endangered his friends in their rescue, honestly, but he elects to avoid mentioning that part. Especially since he's certainly not okay with it having happened to him either.]

[redmare]

We'll get them, whoever it is.

[ That's all she can offer. It was frustrating, annoying even, and while she may be ticked off, she can only imagine how much more upset she'd be if she were the one caught. In that sense, she sympathized with him. ]

[revolutionfalcon]

I know. I'm going to make sure of it, one way or another. [He's already in contact with other people he knows are investigating, and his tone is firm and certain. It's very clear that no matter how long it takes, he's planning to have his revenge for this.]

Going from just getting the newcomers caught up in their feud with the old gods to actively targeting us is going to be the worst mistake they ever made.

[redmare]

[ Chinatsu can't say she hates this side of him. ]

They said it was someone pretending to be a god or something, right? How...do you even do that?

[revolutionfalcon]

I think they said it was a god they didn't have on record. So it could be someone who's just chosen to stay out of their sight. [Shun sounds grave enough about that part himself, though, because that should be no mean feat considering the amount of land the Heavens claim to be able to search.] But how they've stayed hidden this long is enough of a question by itself.

[redmare]

Seriously. How do you hide from the heavens?

[ That was a pretty concerning, how even the heavens had no clue who was pulling the strings. The other question would be why they were being so discreet. ]

Do you think you could do it? I mean, hide. Like, how would you even go about doing that?

[revolutionfalcon]

I think you'd have to be familiar with how the Heavens search and what they have at their disposal to do it. [Shun says that with the considered, grave tone of someone who's had this on their mind for a while. It's definitely an idea he's entertained before the more official statement from the Heavens.]

Whoever it is probably has insiders either misleading the search or giving them information to stay several steps ahead.

[redmare]

...So you're saying there are moles here?

[ Now that wasn't reassuring. ]

Are the older gods doing anything about flushing them out? 'Cause they've been making it sound like things have been going alright here.

[revolutionfalcon]

Exactly. The fact that we still have no traces of a culprit from things like the burning of Amaterasu's temple says that as well.

[There's absolutely no way anyone should've gotten away with that unless they were intimately familiar with how the temple was guarded, or were working with someone who was.]

The ones I've spoken to about it at least seem to be taking the idea seriously, but there's a limit. Like Amaterasu refuses to suspect any of her shinki.

[redmare]

[ Chinatsu is about to comment on how ridiculous Amaterasu was being, but then...]

...If something like that happened to you, would you suspect any of us?

[revolutionfalcon]

Do you think Amaterasu knows every one of her shinki as well as I've had the chance to get to know you four? She's got dozens, if not hundreds. [Shun wouldn't suspect them unless it was something that could really only have come from them, but that doesn't mean he'd single them out entirely, either. Still, the point of numbers is a good enough argument there.]

Her excuse is none of them have blighted her, which is a dangerous foundation to base it on.

[redmare]

That's...[ He had a point. Blight was caused by feelings of guilt...but it was very possible for someone to lack that. ]

Do the other older gods agree with that? Maybe they can talk some sense into her if she won't listen to you guys.

[revolutionfalcon]

I doubt any of her advisors would agree to it - Suijin is usually reasonable, but even she's cagey about that sort of thing. Orihime isn't in a position to talk to her, Ebisu's reputation took a hit recently enough that he probably isn't either, and Bishamon's busy with work. So basically, the ones that agree are the ones that wouldn't be able to convince her.

[Fuujin and Raijin would definitely be beyond it, since Fuujin's a hardheaded idiot and Raijin seems to be one of those honourable sorts. Still, it does sound like Shun's considered the possibilities there even if they're not very useful to them.]

[redmare]

So the only way is to actually find the leak. Maybe..I dunno...maybe we could trick them into revealing themselves?

[ That happens, right? ]

Knowing you you've probably got a bunch of plans forming in that head of yours, don't you?

[revolutionfalcon]

If they're one of the old gods, I doubt they're going to be that stupid. More likely they'd find a way to frame someone. [As incompetent as the Heavens can be, someone operating as a traitor for that long would have more sense than to be tricked out into the open.]

I wouldn't call them plans yet. Just thoughts. But I don't intend to let them keep getting away with what they've been doing.

[redmare]

You planning to share those plans? Because you sure as hell aren't thinking of jumping in solo, right?